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Archives for February 2, 2018

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

I mentioned that I made some slow cooker (aka crockpot) meals for my oldest daughter and her husband for Christmas. One of those meals was a freezer to slow cooker pulled pork.

In case you are not familiar with pulled pork, it is traditionally a way to use a cheaper or tougher cut of meat like a pork shoulder, sometimes called pork butt, by cooking it low and slow. In many parts of the United States when they talk about barbecue they mean pulled pork.

Not everyone has access to a smoker or other method to cook or smoke their butts. I have found that making slow cooker pulled pork is a great way to get similar results without as much effort or having to go outside!

The recipe I made for D1 was a Carolina style slow cooker pulled pork. One of the things that makes it Carolina style, is the use of vinegar. Also, the way it’s topped is unique. Carolina Style pulled pork sandwiches are topped with coleslaw and onions. Another thing I did with D1’s cookbook was to include ideas for side dishes to go with the meals. Sometimes deciding what to serve with the main course can be as confusing or time consuming as choosing what the main course is going to be. For the meal of Slow Cooker Pulled Pork sandwiches I paired coleslaw to top the meat as well as chopped onion and baked beans and potato salad. All 3 of these sides can be made easily or picked up at the local grocery store.

Although I make the recipe for the freezer, you can certainly make this slow cooker pulled pork without freezing it first!

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

3-pound boneless pork shoulder or roast

1 Tablespoon paprika

1 Tablespoon pepper

1 Tablespoon salt

1 Tablespoon brown sugar

1 cup cider vinegar

¾ cup ketchup

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Combine all the ingredients in a zip top freezer bag. Freeze. Remove from freezer the day before you want to serve it. Place all contents in slow cooker and cook on high for 6 to 7 hours or low for about 8-9 hours, until pork is done. Remove pork and pull or shred. Add shredded pork back into the slow cooker. Stir into the sauce / juices. Serve on sandwich buns, with coleslaw topping the meat.

NOTE:

To pull or shred the pork remove it from the slow cooker. Using 2 large forks pull the pork in opposite directions. Continue until all of the pork has been shredded. Remove any large pieces of fat and other pieces that you do not want to eat before returning it to the juices.